Profile transferring device

ABSTRACT

A profile transferring device comprises a body composed of two portions each of which includes a pair of connected projecting walls, the body portions being disposed in superposed relationship with the free edges of the respective walls of each portion being spaced and defining an opening along each longitudinal side of the body, the walls of one portion being inclined towards the other portion, a pair of end pieces being disposed one at each end of the body and engaged with the body portions to retain the body portions in superposed relationship, one of said body portions including between its walls a longitudinal ridge which is a fixed integral part of said body portion, the apex of the ridge being positioned in the direction towards the other body portion beyond the plane containing the free edges of the walls of said other body portion, a plurality of resilient linear rods being disposed through the body and projecting at each end through the openings, said rods being in side by side relationship and abutting on said ridge apex and on said free edges of said other body portion so as to be flexed and frictionally held in said body.

United States Patent Madden July 25, 1972 [54] PROFILE TRANSFERRINGDEVICE Primary Examiner-Leonard Forman [72] Inventor. gznfztldl rancisMadden, Goring-By-Sea, Assistant Examiner-Dennis A. Bearing gAttorney-William Anthony Drucker [73] Assignee: William A. Drucker, NewYork, NY. 22 Filed: Jan. 26, 1971 [57] ABSTRACT A profile transferringdevice comprises a body composed of [21] Appl' 109936 two portions eachof which includes a pair of connected pro- Related s Application Damjecting walls, the body portions being disposed in superposedrelationship with the free edges of the: respective walls of each [63]Commuauon of 776,727; Y 1968i portion being spaced and defining anopening along each lon- 3,419,965 wh'ch a of gitudinal side of the body,the walls of one portion being 1966 abandons? whlch a inclined towardsthe other portion, a pair of end pieces being tmuanon Apnl 1964' aban'disposed one at each end of the body and engaged with the wh'ch acommuauon of body portions to retain the body portions in superposedrela- Apn 2, 1962, aban on tionship, one of said body portions includingbetween its walls 52 a longitudinal ridge which is a fixed integral partof said body E portion, the apex of the ridge being positioned in thedirection towards the other body portion beyond the plane containing[58] Field of Search ..33/1 75 the free edges of the walls ofsaid otherbody portion a plumb ty of resilient linear rods being disposed throughthe body and [56] References c projecting at each end through theopenings, said rods being in UNITED STATES PATENTS side by siderelationship and abutting on said ridge apex and on said free edges ofsaid other body portion so as to be flexed I llsielggardt andfrictional), held in i body v a en 2,759,271 8/1956 Von Duyke ..33/175 7Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENTED JULZSIHYZ 3,678,587

saw 2 or 3 HA/5x7 F. WHITE/V PROFILE TRANSFERRING DEVICE This is aContinuation of my co-pending U.S. Pat. application No. 776727 filed18th of Nov. 1968, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,419,965, which latter was aContinuation of my U.S. Pat. application, No. 534958 filed 25th Feb.1966 and now abandoned, which latter was a Continuation of my U.S. Pat.application No. 360623 filed 17th Apr. 1964 and now abandoned, whichlatter was a Continuation of my U.S. Pat. application No. 184171 filed2nd Apr. 1962, now abandoned, in which there was claimed under thelntemational Convention the priority date 7th Apr. 1961 being the dateof filing of my British Pat. application No. 12535/61.

This invention relates to devices for application to nonregular orcomplex profiles to enable the contour to be transferred elsewhere.

The main object of the invention is to provide a profile transferringdevice of simple and robust nature for use as a tradesman's tool.

A second object is to. provide a further improvement whereby the profileacquired is made available, in reverse, at the other end of the device.

According to the present invention, a profile transferring devicecomprises broadly a body, a plurality of rods arranged in the body inside by side relationship in one plane and longitudinally slidablethrough said body between spaced guides and across a friction meansengaged between the body and the rods, said friction means beingdisposed between the spaced guides. A bearing surface may be provided insaid body opposite to said friction means, said rods being slidablebetween said bearing surface and said friction means.

The rods are set manually with their tips substantially aligned, and arethen pushed against the profile until the whole of the contour has hadat least one rod against it. The

tips of the rods have then assumed the counterpart profile.

If the rods are long enough to project at both ends, and are of the samelength, the tips remote from the profile automatically assume thecorresponding contour.

If the length of the rods is the same as a floor tile or the like ontowhich the contour is to be transferred, then it will indicate not onlythe contour but also the position on the tile for cutting to fonn aperfect fit.

The bearing surface means may be constituted by ridging in the body andin a preferred form, the body has a first transversal ridge portionserving as a main seating, the frictional means being arranged tocorrespond therewith and urge the rods into engagement with the ridge.

The frictional means may be resiliently compressible or bendable elementdisposed within the body, e.g. in corresponding position to the bearingsurface, and bearing on the series of rods. Two bearing surfaces, andtwo friction means may be arranged in parallel positions in the body.The friction means may be a rubber or like rod or tube disposed betweenthe body and the rods so as to lie transversely to the rods in acompressed state.

The body may be two portions of sheet material one of which includes oneor more ridges as bearing surfaces and the other of which has one ormore recesses forming a seating for rubber or like rods or tubes formingfriction means.

Where the profile is of greater length than one such device, means maybe provided for coupling the body portions of two or a plurality of suchdevices end to end with the rods thereof in the same or parallel planes,and may include a pivot permitting movement of one device with respectto the or each other to which it is coupled about an axis perpendicularto the plane of the rods, and releasable means for locking the coupleddevices against pivoting.

Some embodiments of profile transfer device, and their manner of use,are hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawings,wherein FIG. I is a plan view of a first embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a corresponding end elevation FIG. 3 is a transverse section,to a larger scale, corresponding to FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a section of a second embodiment having two frictional meansand seatings for the rods;

FIG. 5 illustrates a method of use of a single device;

FIG. 6 illustrates the use of a double device;

FIG. 7 illustrates the use of a multiple device;

FIG. 8 is a transverse section of a further embodiment in which theneedles are held in a bent condition;

FIG. 9 is a transverse section of yet another embodiment with areleasable locking means;

FIG. 10 is a transverse section of a still further embodiment.

In FIGS. 1 to 3, the device comprises a body I with upper and lowersheet metal portions 2 and 3 secured by two end caps 4. The portion 3 istrough shaped and includes side walls 5, 6 as guides for the rods 7, andhas a central hump portion 8 which serves as a bearing. The portion2 hasside walls 9, 10 serving, with the walls 5, 6 to provide two pairs ofspaced guides, along each side of the body, between which the rods pass.The upper portion also has a central humped portion 11 aligned with theportion 8 and serving as a seating for a length 12 of rubber tubingwhich abuts frictionally on the rods 7. In FIG. I the rods are alignedin corresponding position; if either end is pushed up against a profile,e.g. moulded woodwork, the rods 7 slide through, under friction, andassume the counterpart of the profile being taken off. The other ends ofthe rods also assume the same profile.

In FIG. 4, the portion 13 is provided with humped portions 14 for tworubber tubes 15, and two humped portions 16 to receive longer rods 7a.

FIG. 5 shows a manner of use; assuming that a tiled floor, (or square oflinoleum etc.) is being; laid, the last row of field" tiles 17 leaves asmaller gap 18 between it and the skirting 19. A tile must be speciallycut for a contoured moulding 20. The length and width of the rodscorresponds to the length and width of the tile. To transfer theprofile, the tile 21 is laid symmetrically on the last field oppositethe moulding. The device is pressed against the moulding}, and the rearedge" 22 of the rods indicates the shape to be cut out and the correctposition for cutting it.

FIG. 6 shows a method of taking the profile of a larger article, and twodevices are coupled by a bracket 23 mounted on one of them by means oftwo screws 24, 25 at one end. The other device is pivotably coupled tothe bracket by knurled screws 26, 27 one of which is disposed in aslotted hole 28 in the bracket and the other of which can be moved alongan arcuate slot 29 and tightened in the desired position. The rods ofboth devices are in the same plane, but inversion of one device wouldplace the rods in spaced parallel planes.

In FIG. 7 is shown a larger number of devices coupled in series, as inFIG. 6, and utilized for taking off a relatively very long andnon-regular profile of a motor vehicle body.

In FIG. 8 the devices are constituted by longitudinal frames 30, 31retained in assembled condition by end plates 32. Rods 33 are seatedslidable between center portions 34, 35 and pass between pairs of spacedguides constituted by edge portions 36, 37, and 38, 39 the rods beingforced into a slightly bent shape so as to be frictionally held.

In FIG. 9 of the drawing, there is shown an embodiment of profiletransferring device comprising a body constituted by longitudinal frames40, 41. A plurality of rods 46 are arranged in the body in side by siderelationship in one plane and are longitudinally slidable through saidbody between two pairs of spaced guides constituted by rollers 42, 43and 44, 45 mounted within the body. The rods are slidable across afriction means which is engaged between the body and the rods, and whichis disposed between the roller pairs. Said friction means comprise a camroller 47 rotatable about an eccentric axis 48 such that rotation ofsaid cam roller in a first direction causes it to to engage and lock therods by bending them, and rotation of said cam roller in a seconddirection causes it to disengage from said rods. The whole may be madeof stainless steel for medical use.

In FIG. 10 the embodiment shown has a body composed of two portions 49and 50 each of which includes a respective pair of connected projectingwalls 51 and 52. The body portions 49 and 50 are disposed in superposedrelationship with the free edges of respective walls 51 and 52 beingspaced and defining an opening 53 along each longitudinal side of thebody. The walls 51 of body portion 49 are inclined towards the walls 52of body portion 50. A pair of end pieces 54 are disposed one at each endof the body and are engaged with the body portions 49 and 50 to retainsaid portions in superposed relationship. The body portion 49 includesbetween its walls 51 a longitudinal depending ridge 55 which is a fixedintegral part of the body portion 49. The apex 56 of the ridge 55 ispositioned, in the .direction towards the other body portion 50, beyondthe plane containing the free edges 57 of the body portion 50. Aplurality of resilient linear rods 58 are disposed through the body andproject at each end through said openings, the rods being in side byside relationship. The rods abut on the ridge apex 56 and on the freeedges 57 of the body portion 50, whereby said rods are flexed andfrictionally held in the body.

These devices described are small enough and robust enough to permittheir handling as a tool rather than as a piece of special equipment,and they can be applied by tradesmen and others in very many fieldswhere a non-regular or complex contour has to be dealt with.

I claim:

1. A profile transferring device comprising: a body, composed of twoportions, each of which includes a pair of connected walls, the bodyportions being disposed in superposed relationship, with the free edgesof the respective walls of each portion being spaced and defining anopening along each longitudinal side of said body, the wall of oneportion being inclined towards the other portion; one of said bodyportions including between said walls a bearing surface on alongitudinal ridge, which is a fixed integral part of said body portion,the bearing surface of said ridge being positioned, in the directiontowards the other said body portion, beyond the plane containing thefree edges of the walls of said body portion; a pair of end pieces,disposed one at each end of said body and engaged with said bodyportions to retain the portions in superposed relationship; and aplurality of resilient linear rods disposed through said body andprojecting at each end through the said openings, said rods being inside by side relationship, and abutting on said ridge and on said freeedges of said other body portion, whereby said rods are bent andfrictionally held in said body.

2. A profile transferring device as claimed in claim I in which said onebody portion includes a pair of walls forming two planes converging atan obtuse angle and said integral longitudinal ridge formed at theconvergence of said walls, said ridge projecting beyond the plane formedby the edges of said walls of said one body portion.

3. A profile transfer device as claimed in claim 1 in which said onebody portion includes a pair of walls connected by a third wall in aplane approximately parallel to the longitudinal axes of the resilientrods.

4, A device according to claim 3 in which the third wall includes saidlongitudinal ridge, centrally located projecting in the direction of thefree edges of said walls of said other body portion, said ridgeprojecting beyond the plane formed by the edges of said walls of saidone body portion.

5. A profile transferring device comprising: a hollow body composed totwo trough shaped frame portions formed from rigid sheet material, eachof which includes a pair of connected converging walls, said body frameportions being disposed in superposed relationship, with the free edgesof the respective walls of each portion being spaced and defining anopening along each longitudinal side of said body, the walls of oneportion being inclined towards the other portion; one of said bodyportions including between said walls a longitudinal ridge, which is afixed integral part of said body portion positioned towards the otherbody portion beyond the edges of either body portion; a pair of endplates screwed one at each end of said body and engaged with said bodyportions to retain the portions in assembled superposed condition; and aplurality of resilient linear metal rods disposed through said body andproecting at each end through said openings, said rods bein sli able inside by side relationship, and frrctronally held an bent between andagainst said ridge and said free edges of said other body portion.

6. A device as in claim 5 in which the rods are of stainless steel.

7. A device as in claim 1 in which the end pieces are secured by screws.

1. A profile transferring device comprising: a body, composed of twoportions, each of which includes a pair of connected walls, the bodyportions being disposed in superposed relationship, with the free edgesof the respective walls of each portion being spaced and defining anopening along each longitudinal side of said body, the wall of oneportion being inclined towards the other portion; one of said bodyportions including between said walLs a bearing surface on alongitudinal ridge, which is a fixed integral part of said body portion,the bearing surface of said ridge being positioned, in the directiontowards the other said body portion, beyond the plane containing thefree edges of the walls of said body portion; a pair of end pieces,disposed one at each end of said body and engaged with said bodyportions to retain the portions in superposed relationship; and aplurality of resilient linear rods disposed through said body andprojecting at each end through the said openings, said rods being inside by side relationship, and abutting on said ridge and on said freeedges of said other body portion, whereby said rods are bent andfrictionally held in said body.
 2. A profile transferring device asclaimed in claim 1 in which said one body portion includes a pair ofwalls forming two planes converging at an obtuse angle and said integrallongitudinal ridge formed at the convergence of said walls, said ridgeprojecting beyond the plane formed by the edges of said walls of saidone body portion.
 3. A profile transfer device as claimed in claim 1 inwhich said one body portion includes a pair of walls connected by athird wall in a plane approximately parallel to the longitudinal axes ofthe resilient rods.
 4. A device according to claim 3 in which the thirdwall includes said longitudinal ridge, centrally located projecting inthe direction of the free edges of said walls of said other bodyportion, said ridge projecting beyond the plane formed by the edges ofsaid walls of said one body portion.
 5. A profile transferring devicecomprising: a hollow body composed to two trough shaped frame portionsformed from rigid sheet material, each of which includes a pair ofconnected converging walls, said body frame portions being disposed insuperposed relationship, with the free edges of the respective walls ofeach portion being spaced and defining an opening along eachlongitudinal side of said body, the walls of one portion being inclinedtowards the other portion; one of said body portions including betweensaid walls a longitudinal ridge, which is a fixed integral part of saidbody portion positioned towards the other body portion beyond the edgesof either body portion; a pair of end plates screwed one at each end ofsaid body and engaged with said body portions to retain the portions inassembled superposed condition; and a plurality of resilient linearmetal rods disposed through said body and projecting at each end throughsaid openings, said rods being slidable in side by side relationship,and frictionally held and bent between and against said ridge and saidfree edges of said other body portion.
 6. A device as in claim 5 inwhich the rods are of stainless steel.
 7. A device as in claim 1 inwhich the end pieces are secured by screws.